The lightsaber clashes of Rebels season 3

With Thrawn being the main antagonist and the Inquisitors out of the picture, one could start to fear that Rebels season 3 won’t feature that many lightsaber battles. I don’t think those fears will come to fruition though. In fact, since a third main cast member (Sabine) has added a saber to her armoury, I’m anticipating an array of match-ups that’s more interesting and varied than the constant Kanan-and-Ezra-versus-Inquisitors we’ve seen previously. Here’s an outline of some fights I’m pretty sure we’ll be witnessing on the small screen in the coming year.

Kanan VS Maul

As you can see in this image from the trailer, this showdown is definitely happening. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened multiple times this season. After Maul blinded him and attempted to steal his Padawan, Kanan definitely has beef with the former Sith Lord.

Oddly though, in the scene pictured here, I don’t think it’s Kanan who is actually fighting here. The green eyes are a dead giveaway that he’s being controlled by Dathomiran magick. Which of course begs the question, what is Maul doing on Dathomir to incur the wrath of his own people? Possibly he’s trying to take some magickal artifact to aid his revenge on someone who’ll show up later in this list…

Kanan VS Ezra

We can all see Ezra has a tendency to tap into his darker emotions at times. It’s caused plenty of people to speculate that he’ll be falling to the Dark Side near the end of the series. I don’t know if I agree that that’s what’ll be happening.. But I do know the people at Lucasfilm like to play with our expectations.

And so, with Kanan becoming possessed in an episode on Dathomir, I 100% believe they’ll take the chance to pit the master against the apprentice. Beyond being an amazing scene, it would also further Ezra’s path, making him less trusting of Kanan. Between that and Kanan taking on another sparring student (Sabine), the gap between Ezra and his master will definitely be growing this season.. Possibly setting up for Kanan VS Ezra round two in the future.

Sabine VS Maul

Sabine will be coming into possession of the darksaber this season. This weapon had been a Mandalorian heirloom for ages, passing down generation to generation. Maul, however, claimed it as his own after besting the sword’s previous owner, Pre Vizsla, in single combat. He apparently lost it again before his exile on Malachor. Now that it’s back on the scene, Maul will definitely be aiming to take it back from Sabine.

Adding more fuel to the fire, we know for sure Maul has history with Sabine’s mother. Whether her mother is Rook Kast (as I’ve argued earlier) or someone else, Filoni has confirmed she was in the throne room when Maul killed Satine Kryze. It’s unconfirmed if Sabine’s mother backed Maul on that day or turned against him, but regardless, he will be interested to learn of Sabine’s heritage.

All this makes me very excited for a fight where Maul is agressively trying to take back what he considers his. Speculating one step further, Kanan and/or Ezra will likely be stepping in to save Sabine’s hide here, as minimal training should make her no match for a former Sith Lord.

Sabine VS her mother

Granted, this is a long shot, and the least likely matchup on this list to actually happen. And even if it does, it could be a very different fight altogether, with both sides darting around using jetpacks and shooting at each other. But if Sabine owns the darksaber, I’m willing to bet that she’ll use it in multiple important battles this upcoming season. And what could be a more important battle than a battle against your mother for the future of the Mandalorian people?

Now, this requires a bit of thinking through, but bear with me. We saw Sabine best Fenn Rau last season. Factor in her possession of the darksaber, and it’s not hard to see Rau and his faction of Mandalorians being loyal to Sabine and her fight against the Empire. We also know there’s a faction of Mandalorians fighting on the other side, fór the Empire. It’s only logical that these two factions will be clashing on our tv screens this year. It’s also logical to assume that whoever leads that Imperial faction of Mandalorians is a big fan of the Mandos’ warrior culture. Like, say, a former member of Death Watch would. And again, Rook or not, we know that describes Sabine’s mother perfectly.

And thus, I surmise we’ll see Sabine and her darksaber taking on her mother carrying a vibroblade of some sort.Disclaimer: I do not claim responsibility for any disappointment that may be gotten from this not ending up happening.

Maul VS Palpatine

And saving the best for last, I believe we’ll be seeing a rematch of one of the greatest lightsaber battles in Star Wars history: Maul versus Darth Sidious. If you’ve read the following blurb DisneyXD showed us, you’ll know that Maul hasn’t satisfied his thirst for revenge. He’ll be looking to take down an old foe, which he thinks he should’ve done years ago.

Two names immediately pop into my head: Obi-Wan Kenobi and Sheev Palpatine. However, I don’t think he’ll be going after old Ben. First off, he has no way of knowing or finding out where Kenobi even is. But more importantly, he’s already gotten revenge against Kenobi when he murdered the woman he loved in front of him. After that, Palpatine killed both Mauls brother and his mother. So Maul’s hatred of the Emperor should now be far greater than his loathing of Kenobi ever was.

Maul VS Palpatine it is then, in a battle of Sam Witwers! (Witwer voices both these characters in the animated series) Sadly, while I love Maul, I believe this means that Rebels season 3 is his last time to shine. But he’ll definitely go out with a bang, and we’ll be thanking him for a lot of amazing lightsaber action this season.

So there you have it! Five battles to look forward to in the next couple of months. Which one are you most excited by? And which fight am I totally off base on? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter!